Penholder



Feb. 4, 1930. J. T. JOHNSON ET AL PENHOLDER Filed Oct. 12, 1928 Patented Feb. 4, 1930 UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE JOHN .T. JOHNSON AND GILBERT K. JOHNSON, F BUFFALO, NEW YORK PENHOLDER Application filed October 12, 1928. Serial No. 312,088.

Our invention relates'in general to desk utilities and in particular to a pen holder used upon a desk or table with which a fountain pen is used.

The principal object of our invention has been to provide a pen holder of this nature which shall be universal in its application, being adapted to fit fountain pens of various makes and sizesof either the pocket or desk t pe.

Another object has been to provide a pen holder which shall readily permit the pen to be adjusted at any desired angle.

Another object has been to provide a device of this nature which shall be provided with means, whereby the pen receptacle may have universal movement and be frictionally held in position by means of gravity.

nother object has been to provide a device having a receptacle which shall securely hold the pen in place without the use of clips or springs.

Another object has been to provide a device in which the pen receptacle and its universal mounting shall be easily interchange able with the base.

Moreover, our device is very rugged and durable in construction, and inexpensive to manufacture. 1

The above objects and advantages have been accomplished by the device shown in the accompanying drawings, of which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing our complete device with a pen held therein.

Flg. 2 is a vertical, sectional elevation of our device and is taken through the center line of the pen holder.

Our device comprises in general a base 5; a sphere 6 mounted therein for universal oscillation; and a pen receptacle 7.

The base 5 may be made of any suitable material, such, for instance, as brass, iron, marble, or the like, and for convenience we have shown it of cast material having a hollow center 8 and side walls 9. The base is provided in its upper surface with a semispherical recess 10 which is preferably struck from a center arranged slightly above the top surface 11 of the base, so that the sphere 6 with its pen receptacle 7 Will have a slightly the recess by suitable adhesive material so that it becomes a fixed part of the base. Obviously, when a lining '12 is used, the radius of the recess is equal .to the radius of the sphere plus the thickness ofthe lining.

The sphere 6 is preferably relatively large in diameter so as to present to the lining 12 (or recess 10 if no lining is used) a large bearing surface, thus creating the necessary frictional resistance and also providing a very rugged structure. This sort, of an arrangement also makes possible the interchangeable characteristic of our invention. This sphere, as shown in the drawing, is of solid material, and is preferably made of material which has a relatively high specific gravity, so that the force of gravity shall keep the sphere with the pen receptacle in position without the use of any mechanical means. While the sphere is shown solid, it is obvious that it may be made of thin light sheet material or even be cast in the form of a hollow ball, and afterwards weighted by being filled with material having a high specific gravity. Since the sphere 6 simply rests in the lining 12, it is obvious that any sphere made of a particular material or finish and having a pen receptacle of a desired color or material maybe easily interchanged with a base which is of a material or finish desired by the purchaser, thus making it possible to interchange the parts, which not only makes'it easy to. satisfy customers, but unnecessary to carry a large stock of complete devices on hand.

The sphere 6 is providedwith a recess 15 so located that its axis extends substantially diametrically through the sphere. This recess may be formed at its outer end with screwthreads 16. The pen receptacle 7 is provided with an inner end portion 17 and with an outer end portion 18. The inner end portion, as shown, is tapered, but obviously may be made cylindrical for engagement with the cylindrical recess formed in the sphere. At a point on the receptacle which lies just below the surface of the sphere are formed a plurality of screw-threads 19 which engage with the screw-threads 16 formed in .the sphere, whereby the pen receptacle may be secured thereto. The outer end portion 18 of the pen receptacle is preferably slightly tapered so as to add to the attractive appearance of the device and also so as to make the walls thereof substantially uniform in thickness. An annular flange 20 is prefera/blyformed at the outer end of this portion of the receptacle so as to strengthen it at this point. The pen receptacle is provided with a tapered bore 21 which preferably comprises two portions 22 and 23, the portion 23 being arranged at the inner end of the pen receptacle and having its upper end connected with the portion 22 by means of a curved annular surface 24. By making the bore of the pen receptacle tapered, and by making it of two portions of different sizes, our pen holder is thus adapted to hold fountain or desk pens of various sizes and makes without the necessity of having various pen receptacles for various pens. Thus, it is not necessary to purchase a new pen when our invention is purchased and this is another very valuable feature, since our pen holders are, therefore, interchangeable and each may be used with any pen.

It will be obvious from the foregoing description,that any suitable pen placed within the pen receptacle of our device will find a diameter in the bore 21 thereof which will fit the part of the pen which engages with the bore and will thus centralize the pen and securely hold it in position until it is again withdrawn for further use. Such a pen is shown at 25 in Fig. 1. The sphere may be moved in a universal manner to occupy any position within the limit of movement, which limit is brought about by the contact of the pen receptacle 7 with the top surface 11 of the base 5.

Obviously, some modifications of the details herein shown and described may be made without departing from the spirit of our invention or the scope'of the appended claim, and we do not, therefore, wish to be limited to the exact embodiment herein shown and described, the form shown being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim is:

A pen holder comprising a base formed with a hemispherical socket, a frictional lining in the socket, a weighted sphere fitting into the socket and resting upon said lining, the weight of the sphere being sufficient to hold it in adjusted position in the socket, a

pen receptacle fitted in the sphere in the por-v 

